scholarly journals The Challenge of Social Workers in Handling Cases of Child Sexual Abuse

2018 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 28-36
Author(s):  
Alit Kurniasari
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Worker ◽  
Child Protection ◽  
Sexual Experience ◽  
Emotional Reactions ◽  
Best Interests ◽  
Child Victims ◽  
The Social

This article discusses the Social Workers who work in the field of Child Protection, especially those who handle cases of child victims of sexual violence. In many cases, both victims and perpetrators need serious handling in order not to cause further problems. Social workers role are very important in restoring the trauma of children as victims, and addressing children's issues as behaviors including intervening with their families and the environment. During the practice of his profession, it can cause emotional reactions to the child's behavior, such as shock, trust and distrust because the child's sexual experience exceeds his or her age. In addition it can experience burnout, which can affect the practice of his profession. The condition can not be seen as the inability to run the profession, but rather as a challenge for the Social Worker, to improve his professional skills. This paper attempts to provide an alternative solution to minimize the emotional reactions in dealing with cases of Child Sexual Abuse, through a victim-centered approach with the best interests of the child, as a way of resolving conflict in intervention.

Child sexual abuse: A critical analysis of social workers' role in recognising and responding to it

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 26-33
Author(s):  
Gary Wade
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
Social Workers ◽  
Child Protection ◽  
Sexual Exploitation ◽  
Critical Evaluation ◽  
It Services ◽  
Policy And Practice ◽  
Critical Attention

The role of social workers in safeguarding and child protection has received much critical attention in recent years, in an evolving political and social arena, where policy and practice has shifted following both public outcry of serious case reviews and subsequent policy and practice changes concerning the profession and how it services the needs of the most vulnerable in society. This article seeks to critically examine the current methodology for identifying suspected child sexual abuse signs and indicators, the evolving spectrum of abuse, including critical evaluation of current perspectives on child sexual exploitation.

‘But don’t tell anybody’: The dilemma of confidentiality for the lone social worker in the context of child protective services

2017 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
pp. 363-375
Author(s):  
Radka Janebová
Keyword(s):  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Worker ◽  
Child Protection ◽  
Child Protective Services ◽  
Legal Protection ◽  
Research Tool ◽  
Protective Services ◽  
The Social ◽  
Methodological Tool ◽  
And Control

Social workers repeatedly find themselves confronted with a dilemma regarding the seemingly conflicting responsibilities of support and control. In the field of child protection, such a dilemma can literally be fatal in situations where the social worker feels solidarity with parents but also sees the child as in some way endangered. This article presents and discusses the methodological tool of self-reflective research in an attempt to understand the origins and contexts of certain conflicting responsibilities between support and control. This research tool is then applied to the author’s own practice in the field of social and legal protection of children.

scholarly journals The prevalence, nature, and impact of intrafamilial child sexual abuse: findings from a rapid evidence assessment

2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 231-243 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Gekoski ◽  
Julia C. Davidson ◽  
Miranda A.H. Horvath
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
Child Protection ◽  
Minority Groups ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Evidence Base ◽  
Child Victims ◽  
Male Victims ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Intrafamilial Child Sexual Abuse

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to report on the findings from a study commissioned by the Office of the Children’s Commissioner (OCC) in England, concerning intrafamilial child sexual abuse (IFCSA)/incest. Specifically, it aims to explore what is known about the prevalence, nature, and impact of IFCSA and where the gaps in knowledge lie. Design/methodology/approach A rapid evidence assessment (REA) was used, the function of which is to: search the literature as comprehensively as possible within given time constraints; collate descriptive outlines of the available evidence on a topic and critically appraise it; sift out studies of poor quality; and provide an overview of the evidence. Over 57,000 documents were scanned, and 296 ultimately systematically analysed. Findings It was found that: there is wide variation in prevalence rates between studies; girls are more likely to be victims than boys; the onset of abuse is typically school age; abuse in minority groups is under-reported; sibling abuse may be more common than that by fathers; female perpetrated abuse may be under-reported; families where abuse occurs are often dysfunctional; and IFCSA has significant adverse effects on victims. Research limitations/implications A REA is not a full systematic review, differing in the scope and depth of the searches and depending almost exclusively on electronic databases, not accompanied by searching journals by hand. Practical implications This work found numerous gaps in current knowledge about IFCSA, which the authors recommend be addressed by further research, including: the scale and nature of IFCSA in disabled victims, research on BME children’s experiences; the prevalence of abuse by stepfathers as compared to biological fathers; the experiences of male victims; the experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered child victims; the short-term impact of IFCSA based on child victims’ experiences; and more widely, further research on the prevalence of abuse in clinical populations and the relationship between that and prevalence in wider society. In addition to such questions, the OCC inquiry will also investigate issues surrounding child protection and criminal justice responses to (IF)CSA and how these might be improved. The evidence base for this section of the inquiry is reported in Gekoski et al. (2016). Originality/value The findings of this research provide the evidence base for a new two-year inquiry into the subject of IFCSA by the OCC.

Are Judges getting the Full Story through Court-ordered Reports and Investigations? A Critical Analysis of the Discourse of Disbelief in an Allegation of Child Sexual Abuse

2014 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 137-146 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pamela D. Schulz
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Discourse Analysis ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
Critical Analysis ◽  
Best Interests ◽  
Family Court ◽  
Maternal Grandmother ◽  
Comprehensive Information ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Family

The care and protection of children takes a different turn when there are allegations of child sexual abuse in a custody battle in the Family Court. In the case referred to in this discourse analysis, two 4- and 5-year-old sisters disclosed incest to a number of people. These were the police, their mother and maternal grandmother, as well as to 12 other people, including contact supervisors and a psychologist. In cases of this kind, the court may ask relevant experts to provide reports in order to decide what action will be in the ‘best interests’ of the children. The following is an analysis of the conversation between the investigating police officer, the social worker and the mother. It shows that mindsets become evident when discourse analysis is applied, and indicates that judges may not be receiving appropriate and comprehensive information or, indeed, ‘the full story’. Discourse analysis, in this instance, suggests that courts could become more aware of other issues at play within interlocutory situations, which may, in fact, determine a child's wellbeing more than is evident before the bench.

Right to Protection against Sexual Abuse and Exploitation

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Asha Bajpai
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
Sexual Exploitation ◽  
Commercial Sexual Exploitation ◽  
Child Victims ◽  
Sexual Offences ◽  
Minor Children ◽  
Marriage Laws ◽  
Education Act ◽  
International Instruments

Child sexual abuse and exploitation covers the sexual maltreatment of both children and young people. Part A deals with child sexual abuse (CSA) in India, its magnitude, and child sexual abuse in institutions. It deals with the national legal regime relating to CSA including the constitutional provisions, Juvenile Justice Act, 2015 and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (POCSO). Law reform relating to some provisions in POCSO, child marriage laws, Right to Education Act and, and child victims and witnesses is recommended. Part B deals with commercial sexual exploitation and trafficking of minor children in the context of organized exploitation for commercial gain. The Indian laws dealing with commercial sexual exploitation and pornography are included. Important judgements and international instruments dealing with child sexual abuse and exploitation and the important role played by NGOs and government in dealing with cases of CSA and exploitation are included.

scholarly journals Early Prevention of Maternal Sexual Abuse

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jelena Gerke ◽  
Tatjana Dietz
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Early Childhood ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
Child Maltreatment ◽  
Child Protection ◽  
Early Prevention ◽  
Marginalized Groups ◽  
Raising Awareness ◽  
Hebrew University ◽  
Research Findings

AbstractChild sexual abuse has been discussed thoroughly; however, marginalized groups of victims such as victims of child sexual abuse in early childhood and victims of maternal sexual abuse have rarely been considered. This essay combines these two relevant perspectives in child protection and aims to pin out future directions in the field of child abuse and specifically maternal sexual abuse and its early prevention. In the course of the 7th Haruv International PhD Workshop on Child Maltreatment at the Hebrew University, Jerusalem, in 2019 the topics of maternal sexual abuse and early prevention of child maltreatment in Germany were discussed and intertwined. Problems concerning the specific research of maternal sexual abuse in early childhood and prevention were identified. Both, maternal sexual abuse as well as sexual abuse in early childhood, i.e. before the age of three, are underreported topics. Society still follows a “friendly mother illusion” while recent cases in German media as well as research findings indicate that the mother can be a perpetrator of child sexual abuse. Similarly, sexual abuse in early childhood, namely abuse before the age of three, is existent; although the recognition of it is difficult and young children are, in regards to their age and development especially vulnerable. They need protective adults in their environment, who are aware of sexual abuse in the first years of life. Raising awareness on marginalized or tabooed topics can be a form of prevention. An open dialog in research and practice about the so far marginalized topics of maternal sexual abuse and sexual abuse in early childhood is crucial.

Jurors’ Gender and Their Fear of False Child Sexual Abuse Accusations Are Related to Their Belief in Child Victims’ Allegations

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-19
Author(s):  
Tayler M. Jones ◽  
Bette L. Bottoms ◽  
Kajal Sachdev ◽  
Jonathan Aniciete ◽  
Karis Gorak
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
Child Sexual Abuse ◽  
Child Victims

scholarly journals Exploring the experiences of social workers in working with children suspected to have fetal alcohol spectrum disorders

2021 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 155-172
Author(s):  
David J Gilbert ◽  
Raja AS Mukherjee ◽  
Nisha Kassam ◽  
Penny A Cook
Keyword(s):  
Social Workers ◽  
Social Services ◽  
Child Protection ◽  
Prenatal Alcohol Exposure ◽  
Alcohol Exposure ◽  
Fetal Alcohol ◽  
The Social ◽  
Prenatal Alcohol ◽  
Fetal Alcohol Spectrum ◽  
Lack Of Knowledge

Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) is one outcome from prenatal alcohol exposure. Social workers are likely to encounter children with the condition, due to the greater likelihood of prenatal alcohol exposure among children in social services settings. This study explores the experiences of social workers in working with children suspected of having FASD and the support offered to social workers, the children and their families. Semi-structured interviews followed by qualitative framework analysis were conducted with seven child and family social workers along with one child protection solicitor who had experience of handling FASD cases. The two main themes that emerged from the data were a lack of knowledge about FASD and the paucity of diagnosis. Lack of knowledge among the social workers was linked to difficulty in managing children suspected to have the condition, feelings of frustration and normalisation of challenging behaviours. The paucity of diagnosis led to an under-emphasis of FASD in assessments, a dearth of specialist services and confusion about its specific effects in contexts of multiple substance misuse and harmful socio-environmental factors. The need for increased FASD awareness within social services and the development of FASD-targeted support for children and families is highlighted. Social workers would benefit from the inclusion of FASD-focused training in their curricula and professional development plans. Improving the diagnostic capacities of health institutions would address the paucity of diagnosis and raise the profile of FASD, especially in the social services setting.

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